Disk Apparatus

ABSTRACT

A disk apparatus comprising a chassis outer sheath having a base body  10  and a lid, in which a front surface of the chassis outer sheath is formed with a disk inserting opening  11  into which a disk is directly inserted, the lid is formed at its central portion with an opening which is greater than a center hole of the disk, a traverse  30  provided on the base body  10  holds a spindle motor  31 A, a pickup  32  and drive means  33  which moves the pickup  32,  a projecting guide is provided on an inner surface of the lid which is located on an outer side of an outer peripheral end of the disk in a state where the disk is set on the spindle motor  31 A and which is located on the side of the disk inserting opening  11,  and the disk inserted from the disk inserting opening  11  is guided by the projecting guide, wherein a contact surface of the projecting guide with respect to the disk is coated with fluorine in which urethane resin beads are mixed.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a disk apparatus for recording orreplaying into or from a disk-like recording medium such as a CD and aDVD, and more particularly, to a so-called slot-in type disk apparatuscapable of directly inserting or discharging a disk from or to outside.

BACKGROUND TECHNIQUE

A loading method is widely employed in conventional disk apparatuses. Inthis method, a disk is placed on a tray or a turntable, and the tray orthe turntable is loaded into an apparatus body.

According to such a loading method, however, since the tray or theturntable is required, there is a limit for thinning the disk apparatusbody.

As a slot-in type disk apparatus, there is proposed a method in which aconveying roller is abutted against a disk surface to pull the disk in(e.g., a patent document 1).

[Patent Document 1]

-   Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. H7-220353

According to the slot-in type as proposed in the patent document 1,however, since a conveying roller which is longer than a diameter of thedisk is used, the width of the apparatus must be increased, and thethickness of the apparatus is also increased due to this conveyingroller.

Therefore, in the slot-in type disk apparatus, it is difficult to reducethe thickness and size of the disk apparatus body.

Thereupon, it is an object of the present invention to provide a diskapparatus capable of reducing the disk apparatus in thickness and size.

Especially, it is an object of the invention to provide a disk apparatuscapable of bringing the disk into contact with an inner surface of a lidand a traverse surface.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

A first aspect of the present invention provides a disk apparatuscomprising a chassis outer sheath having a base body and a lid, in whicha front surface of the chassis outer sheath is formed with a diskinserting opening into which a disk is directly inserted, the lid isformed at its central portion with an opening which is greater than acenter hole of the disk, a traverse provided on the base body holds aspindle motor, a pickup and drive means which moves the pickup, aprojecting guide is provided on an inner surface of the lid which islocated on an outer side of an outer peripheral end of the disk in astate where the disk is set on the spindle motor and which is located onthe side of the disk inserting opening, and the disk inserted from thedisk inserting opening is guided by the projecting guide, wherein acontact surface of the projecting guide with respect to the disk iscoated with fluorine in which urethane resin beads are mixed.

According to this aspect, it is possible to prevent a disk from beingdamaged due to characteristics of the urethane resin beads, to smoothlyslide the disk with sliding ability obtained by the characteristics offluorine, and to effectively prevent a disk from inclining. Therefore,the disk moving space can be narrowed, and the chassis outer sheath canbe reduced in thickness.

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe first aspect, the projecting guide is formed by a narrowed portion.

According to this aspect, since the narrowed portion is formed, thestrength of the lid can be enhanced. Thus, even when a disk is set onthe spindle motor utilizing the lid, it is possible to prevent the lidfrom being deformed, and the disk can reliably be set.

According to a third aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe first aspect, the projecting guide is formed by a plurality ofnarrowed portions.

According to this aspect, the strength of the lid can further beenhanced.

A fourth aspect of the invention provides a disk apparatus comprising achassis outer sheath having a base body and a lid, in which a frontsurface of the chassis outer sheath is formed with a disk insertingopening into which a disk is directly inserted, the lid is formed at itscentral portion with an opening which is greater than a center hole ofthe disk, the opening is formed at its outer periphery with a narrowedportion projecting toward the base body, a traverse provided on the basebody holds a spindle motor, a pickup and drive means which moves thepickup, the traverse is moved, thereby bringing the spindle motor towardthe lid, and the disk abuts against the narrowed portion, therebysetting the disk on a hub of the spindle motor, wherein a contactsurface of the narrowed portion with respect to the disk is coated withfluorine in which urethane resin beads are mixed.

According to this aspect, it is possible to prevent a disk from beingdamaged due to characteristics of the urethane resin beads, to smoothlyslide the disk with sliding ability obtained by the characteristics offluorine, and when a disk is to be set on the hub of the spindle motor,even when the centers of the disk and the hub are deviated, a reliablechucking operation can be carried out by slipping the disk.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe fourth aspect, a second narrowed portion which is tapered from thenarrowed portion toward the disk inserting opening is formed, and acontact surface of the second narrowed portion with respect to the diskis coated with fluorine in which urethane resin beads are mixed.

According to this aspect, it is possible to prevent a disk from beingdamaged due to characteristics of the urethane resin beads, to smoothlyslide the disk with sliding ability obtained by the characteristics offluorine, and to effectively prevent a disk from inclining. Therefore,the disk moving space can be narrowed, and the chassis outer sheath canbe reduced in thickness.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe first to fifth aspects, urethane resin paint in which fluorine andsilicon are mixed is used as the coating material.

According to this aspect, it is possible to prevent the disk from beingdamaged and to smoothly slide the disk.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe first to fifth aspect, a friction coefficient of the coatingmaterial is in a range of 0.2 to 0.6.

According to this aspect, it is possible to enhance the sliding abilityof the disk and to reliably carry out the chucking operation.

According to an eighth aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe first to fifth aspect, an inner surface of the lid is coated withthe coating material.

According to this aspect, it is possible to easily paint the coatingmaterial, and to reliably prevent the disk surface from being damaged.

According to a ninth aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe first to fifth aspect, the spindle motor is located at a centralportion of the base body, a reciprocating range of the pickup is locatedcloser to the disk inserting opening than the spindle motor, thetraverse is disposed such that the reciprocating direction of the pickupis different from an inserting direction of the disk, a projecting guideis provided on the traverse surface which is located on an outer side ofan outer peripheral end of the disk in a state where the disk is set onthe spindle motor and which is located on the side of the disk insertingopening, and the disk inserted from the disk inserting opening is guidedby the projecting guide.

According to this aspect, it is possible to effectively prevent a diskfrom inclining, the disk moving space can be narrowed, and the chassisouter sheath can be reduced in thickness.

According to a tenth aspect of the invention, in the disk apparatus ofthe ninth aspect, a surface of the projecting guide provided on thetraverse surface is coated with fluorine in which urethane resin beadsare mixed.

According to this aspect, it is possible to prevent a disk from beingdamaged and to smoothly slide the disk.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a base body of a disk apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a lid of the disk apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a front view of a bezel mounted on a front surface of achassis outer sheath of the disk apparatus;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side sectional view of an essential portion of thebezel;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing aninner surface of a disk inserting operation of the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing anintermediate stage of the disk inserting operation of the embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing acompleted stage of the disk inserting operation of the embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing astage after a predetermined time is elapsed from the state shown in FIG.7;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing astate in which a traverse is operated in a direction where a spindlemotor side comes closest to the lid;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of a main slider showing a first cammechanism of the embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a side view of a sub-slider showing a second cam mechanismand a third cam mechanism of the embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing the state shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing the state shown in FIGS. 7 and 8;

FIG. 14 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing a state immediately before chucking;

FIG. 15 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing the state shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 16 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing a replaying operation of a disk; and

FIG. 17 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing a case in which a center of the disk and a center of ahub are deviated from each other in the state shown in FIG. 14.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A disk apparatus according to an embodiment of the present inventionwill be explained.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a base body of a disk apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of a lid ofthe disk apparatus. FIG. 3 is a front view of a bezel mounted on a frontsurface of a chassis outer sheath of the disk apparatus. FIG. 4 is anenlarged side sectional view of an essential portion of the bezel.

The disk apparatus of the embodiment comprises a chassis outer sheathhaving a base body and a lid. A bezel is mounted on a front surface ofthe chassis outer sheath. The disk apparatus of the embodiment is of aslot-in type in which a disk is directly inserted into the diskapparatus from a disk inserting opening formed in the bezel shown inFIG. 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, various parts having function for recording orreplaying into or from a disk, and a function for loading the disk aremounted on the base body 10.

The base body 10 is formed with a deep portion 10A and a shallow portion10B with respect to the lid. A wing portion extending from a frontsurface to a rear surface is formed by the shallow portion 10B.

A disk inserting opening 11 into which a disk is directly inserted isformed in a front surface of the base body 10. A connector 12 isdisposed on an end of a rear surface of the base body 10. A traverse 30is disposed on the base body 10 on the side of the disk insertingopening 11, and a rear base 13 is disposed on the base body 10 on theside of the connector 12. The traverse 30 and the rear base 13 are notsuperposed on each other. A printed substrate 14 is disposed on the rearbase 13 on the side of the surface of the base body 10.

The traverse 30 holds a spindle motor 31A, a pickup 32, and drive means33 which moves the pickup 32. A rotation shaft of the spindle motor 31Aincludes a hub 31B which holes a disk. The spindle motor 31A is providedon one end side of the traverse 30, and the pickup 32 is provided suchthat the pickup 32 can move from the one end side to the other end sideof the traverse 30. When the pickup 32 is stopped, it is disposed on theother end side of the traverse 30.

The drive means 33 includes a drive motor, a pair of rails on which thepickup 32 slides, and a gear mechanism for transmitting a driving powerof the drive motor to the pickup 32. The pair of rails are disposed onboth sides so that the one end side and the other end side of thetraverse 30 are connected to each other. The drive motor is disposedoutside of the rail on the side of the disk inserting opening 11 suchthat a drive shaft and the rails are in parallel to each other. The gearmechanism is disposed in a space between the drive motor and the rail onthe side of the disk inserting opening 11.

The spindle motor 31A of the traverse 30 is located at a central portionof the base body 10, a reciprocating range of the pickup 32 is locatedcloser to the disk inserting opening 11 than the spindle motor 31A, anda reciprocating direction of the pickup 32 is different from aninserting direction of the disk. An angle formed between thereciprocating direction of the pickup 32 and the inserting direction is45°.

The traverse 30 is supported by the base body 10 by means of a pair ofinsulators 34A and 34B.

It is preferable that the pair of insulators 34A and 34B are disposedclose to a stationary position of the pickup 32 than the position of thespindle motor 31A, and are disposed closer to the disk inserting opening11 than the stationary position of the pickup 32. In this embodiment,the insulator 34A is provided on one end side of the disk insertingopening 11 near its inner side, and the insulator 34B is provided on thecentral portion of the disk inserting opening 11 near the inner sidethereof. The insulators 34A and 34B includes damper mechanisms made ofelastic material. The insulators 34A and 34B can be displaced by thedamper mechanism in a direction in which the traverse 30 is separatedfrom the base body 10.

A rib 35 is provided on a surface of the traverse 30 on the side of thebase body 10. The rib 35 is provided on the side of the stationaryposition of the pickup 32 outside of the rail opposite from the diskinserting opening 11. The rib 35 has such an enough height that when thetraverse 30 approaches the base body 10, the traverse 30 abuts againstthe base body 10, the traverse 30 can be displaced in a direction wherethe traverse 30 is separated from the base body 10 at the positions ofthe insulators 34A and 34B. Although the rib 35 is provided on thesurface of the traverse 30 on the side of the base body 10 in thisembodiment, the rib 35 may be provided on the surface of the base body10 on the side of the traverse 30. Ribs 35 may be provided on thesurfaces of the traverse 30 both on the side of the base body 10 and onthe side of the traverse 30. Although the traverse 30 on the side of theinsulators 34A and 34B are moved upward utilizing the approaching motionof the traverse 30 toward the base body 10 in the embodiment, this canbe realized by other means which changes the height of the traverse 30at the positions of the insulators 34A and 34B, e.g., means whichchanges heights of the insulators 34A and 34B.

The traverse 30 is operated in such a manner that the spindle motor 31Aapproaches or separates from the base body 10 around the insulators 34Aand 34B as fulcrums.

A main slider 40 and a sub-slider 50 having cam mechanisms which operatethe traverse 30 will be explained below.

Each of the main slider 40 and the sub-slider 50 has the cam mechanismwhich displaces the traverse 30. The main slider 40 and the sub-slider50 are located on the side of the spindle motor 31A. The main slider 40is disposed such that one end thereof is located on the side of a frontsurface of a chassis body 10 and the other end of the main slider 40 islocated on the side of a rear surface of the chassis body 10. Thesub-slider 50 is disposed between the traverse 30 and the rear base 13in a direction perpendicular to the main slider 40.

The cam mechanisms which displace the traverse 30 comprise a first cammechanism 41 and a second cam mechanism 51. The first cam mechanism 41is provided on a surface of the main slider 40 on the side of thespindle motor 31A, and the second cam mechanism 51 is provided on asurface of the sub-slider 50 on the side of the spindle motor 31A.

A base member 15 is provided between the main slider 40 and the traverse30, and a base member 16 is provided between the sub-slider 50 and thetraverse 30. The base member 15 and the base member 16 are fixed to thebase body 10, the base member 15 and the base member 16 limit a positionof a cam pin 36 of the traverse 30 by a vertical groove formed in thebase member 15, and limit a position of a cam pin 37 of the traverse 30by a vertical groove formed in the base member 16.

Here, the base member 16 and the sub-slider 50 are connected to eachother through a third cam mechanism (not shown in FIG. 1). The third cammechanism has a function for moving the sub-slider 50 in a directionseparating away from the base body 10 when the traverse 30 is moved in adirection separating away from the base body 10 by the second cammechanism 51.

A loading motor 60 is disposed on the side of one end of the main slider40. A drive shaft 61 of the loading motor 60 and the one end side of themain slider 40 are connected to each other through a gear mechanism. Aworm gear 62 constituting the gear mechanism is provided on the driveshaft 61 of the loading motor 60. A rotation body 63 having a pluralityof ribs is formed on the worm gear 62 on the side of the loading motor60. A front surface of the chassis outer sheath or the bezel is providedwith an opening (not shown) into which a rod body can be inserted. Ifthe rod body is inserted from the opening, the ribs of the rotation body63 can be pressed. The rotation body 63 is for manually turning thedrive shaft 61 using the rod body.

The loading motor 60 is disposed such that its body is located in thecentral portion of the disk inserting opening 11, and the drive shaft 61is located on the side of the end of the disk inserting opening 11.

The main slider 40 can slide in the longitudinal direction by operatingthe loading motor 60. The main slider 40 is connected to the sub-slider50 by a cam lever 70.

The cam lever 70 has a turning fulcrum 71. The cam lever 70 engages acam groove formed in an upper surface of the main slider 40 by pins 72and 73, and engages a cam groove formed in an upper surface of thesub-slider 50 by a pin 74.

The cam lever 70 moves the sub-slider 50 at timing at which the traverse30 is displaced by the first cam mechanism 41 of the main slider 40,operates the second cam mechanism 51 by movement of the sub-slider 50,and displaces the traverse 30.

The above-explained connector 12, traverse 30, rear base 13, printedsubstrate 14, insulators 34A and 34B, main slider 40, sub-slider 50,base member 15, base member 16 and loading motor 60 are formed in thedeep portion 10A of the base body 10, and a disk-inserting space isformed between the lid and these members.

Next, a guide member which supports a disk when the disk is inserted,and a lever member operated when the disk is inserted will be explained.

A first disk guide 17 having a predetermined length is provided on oneend side of the deep portion 10A near the disk inserting opening 11. Thefirst disk guide 17 has a groove whose cross section as viewed from adisk-inserting side is of U-shape. A disk is supported by this groove.

A pull-in lever 80 is provided in the base body 10 on the other end sideof the disk inserting opening 11. A second disk guide 81 is provided ona movable side end of the pull-in lever 80. The second disk guide 81comprises a cylindrical roller, and is turnably provided on the movableside end of the pull-in lever 80. A groove is formed in a roller outerperiphery of the second disk guide 81, and a disk is supported by thisgroove.

The pull-in lever 80 is disposed such that its movable side end isoperated on the side of the disk inserting opening 11 than itsstationary side end, and the pull-in lever 80 is provided at itsstationary side end with a turning fulcrum 82.

A long groove 83 is formed between the movable side end and thestationary side end of a back surface of the pull-in lever 80 (surfaceon the side of the base body 10). A third disk guide 84 having apredetermined length is provided between the movable side end and thestationary side end of the surface of the pull-in lever 80.

The pull-in lever 80 is operated by a sub-lever 90.

The sub-lever 90 is provided at its movable side one end with aprojection 91, and at its other end with a turning fulcrum 92. Theprojection 91 of the sub-lever 90 slides in the long groove 83 of thepull-in lever 80. The turning fulcrum 92 of the sub-lever 90 is locatedon the main slider 40. The turning fulcrum 92 does not move inassociation with the main slider 40, and is fixed to the base body 10through the base member 15. A pin 93 is provided on a lower surface ofthe sub-lever 90 closer to the projection 91 than the turning fulcrum92. The pin 93 slides in a cam groove formed in an upper surface of themain slider 40. Therefore, an angle of the sub-lever 90 is changed asthe main slider 40 moves, and by changing the angle of the sub-lever 90,the turning angle of the pull-in lever 80 is changed. That is, thesecond disk guide 81 of the pull-in lever 80 approaches and separatesfrom the spindle motor 31A by operating the sub-lever 90. The groove 83Aextending in the turning direction of the sub-lever 90 is formed in anend of the long groove 83 close to the movable side end of the pull-inlever 80. Even if the turning angle of the sub-lever 90 is varied whenthe second disk guide 81 pulls a disk to the deepest position by thegroove 83A, the turning angle of the pull-in lever 80 is not varied, andthe pull-in amount of the disk can be stabilized.

A discharge lever 100 is provided on a side portion of the base body 10which is different from the pull-in lever 80. A guide 101 is provided ona movable side end of one end side of the discharge lever 100. A turningfulcrum 102 is provided on the other end side of the discharge lever100. An abutting portion 103 is provided on the movable side end of thedischarge lever 100 closer to a rear surface thereof than the guide 101.An elastic body 104 is provided on the discharge lever 100. One end ofthe elastic body 104 is fixed to the discharge lever 100 and the otherend thereof is fixed to the rear base 13. When the abutting portion 103is pulled toward the rear surface by the elastic body 104, the abuttingportion 103 abuts against an abutting portion 13A of the rear base 13.The discharge lever 100 is pulled out toward the disk inserting opening11 by an elastic force of the elastic body 104. The discharge lever 100is operated in association with motion of the main slider 40 through thelink arm 105 and the discharge slider 106. The link arm 105 connects themain slider 40 and the discharge slider 106 with each other, and thedischarge lever 100 engages the cam groove of the discharge slider 106by a com pin.

A restriction lever 110 is provided on the side of the rear surface ofthe base body 10. An end of the restriction lever 110 on the side of therear surface is a turning fulcrum 111, and its movable side end has aguide 112. A portion of the restriction lever 110 on the side of theguide 112 is always biased to project toward the front surface by anelastic body 113. The restriction lever 110 operates a limit switch at apredetermined position. That is, if a disk is inserted to apredetermined position, the limit switch is turned off and the loadingmotor 60 is operated. By the rotation of the loading motor 60, the mainslider 40 slides.

A guide lever 180 is provided on a side of the base body 10 on the sameside as the discharge lever 100. A rear surface side of the guide lever180 is a turning fulcrum 181, and a guide 182 is provided on a movableside of the guide lever 180. The guide lever 180 is biased such that aportion thereof on the side of the guide 182 is projects toward a diskby an elastic body 183. The guide lever 180 moves in association withthe main slider 40 through the link arm 105 and the discharge slider106, and a portion of the guide lever 180 on the side of the guide 182separates from the disk in accordance with the motion of the main slider40.

A protect mechanism 120 is provided inside of the disk inserting opening11. When a disk is already set in the chassis outer sheath, the protectmechanism 120 prevents another disk from being inserted from the diskinserting opening 11. The protect mechanism 120 will be explained indetail later. The traverse 30 near the spindle motor 31A includes anopening, and a pin 18 projecting from the base body 10 toward the lid isprovided in the opening. In a state where the traverse 30 moves closestto the base body 10, the pin 18 has a height projecting toward the lidthan the hub 31B of the spindle motor 31A, and in a driving state of thespindle motor 31A (operating state where it is possible to replay andrecord), the pin 18 has a height pulled toward the base body 10 than thehub 31B of the spindle motor 31A. It is preferable that that pin 18 islocated at a position corresponding to a non-recording surface of acenter portion of a disk which is set on the spindle motor 31A, and at aposition further from the insulator 34 than the spindle motor 31A.

A front guider 21 and a traverse felt 22 are provided on the base body10 on its front surface side. The front guider 21 is disposed on theside of one end of the disk inserting opening 11 and between the pull-inlever 80 and the disk inserting opening 11. The front guider 21 isprovided closer to the lid than the loading motor 60, the gear mechanismand the main slider 40 such as to cover portions of these members. Theperiphery of the front guider 21 is tapered so that the entire recordingsurface of a disk to be inserted does not come into contact with thefront guider 21, and a surface of the front guider 21 is coated withurethane fluorine. The traverse felt 22 is provided closer to the lidthan the traverse 30 such as to partially cover the traverse 30 on theside of the disk inserting opening 11. A central portion of the traversefelt 22 swells such that the entire recording surface of a disk to beinserted does not come into contact with the traverse felt 22, and thetraverse felt 22 is made of felt. The front guider 21 and the traversefelt 22 can prevent the recording surface from being damaged by theinclination toward a surface of a disk when the disk can notsufficiently be supported by the first disk guide 17 or the second diskguide 81. The front guider 21 may be made of felt, and the traverse felt22 may be coated with fluorine-based material in which urethane resinbeads are mixed. A projecting guide may be provided on a portion of asurface of the traverse 30 which is located on an outer side than anouter peripheral end of a disk in which the disk is set on the spindlemotor 31A and which is located on the side of the disk inserting opening11. This projecting guide can form a portion of the traverse felt 22 ina projecting form. This projecting guide may be provided instead ofproviding the traverse felt 22. In this case, it is preferable that theprojecting guide surface is coated with fluorine in which urethane resinbeads are mixed. It is preferable to use a coating material in which 5%fluorine and 1.0 to 1.5% silicon are mixed in urethane resin havingbeads whose diameter is 20 microns. Friction coefficient of the coatingmaterial is preferably in a range of 0.2 to 0.6, and more preferablyequal to or less than 0.55.

Next, the lid of the disk apparatus will be explained using FIG. 2.

A plurality of screw holes 131 are provided in an outer edge of the lid130. The lid 130 is mounted on the base body 10 by means of screws.

The lid 130 is formed at its central portion with an opening 132. Theopening 132 is a circular opening having a radius greater than that ofthe center hole of the disk. Therefore, the opening 132 is greater thanthe hub 31B of the spindle motor 31A which is fitted into the centralhole of the disk.

A narrowed portion 133 projecting toward the base body 10 is formed onan outer peripheral portion of the opening 132. The opening 132 isprovided with a narrowed portion 134 which is tapered from the narrowedportion 133 toward the disk inserting opening 11. A projecting guide isformed on the side of the base body 10 by the narrowed portion 134. Aplurality of narrowed portions 135A, 135B, 135C and 135D are formed onthe lid 130, and a projecting guide is formed on the side of the basebody 10 by the narrowed portions 135A, 135B, 135C and 135D.

The narrowed portions 135A, 135B, 135C and 135D are provided on theouter side from the outer peripheral end of a disk 1C in a state wherethe disk is set on the spindle motor 31A, and closer to the diskinserting opening 11 than the opening 132. Disks 1A and 1B inserted fromthe disk inserting opening 11 are guided by the projecting guide formedby the narrowed portions 135A, 135B, 135C and 135D. The strength of thelid 130 is enhanced by the narrowed portions 133, 134, 135A, 135B, 135Cand 135D. The narrowed portions 135A and 135C, or the narrowed portions135B and 135D may be a continuous single narrowed portion, but if theyare divided, the strength of the lid 130 can further be enhanced.

The entire inner peripheral surface of the lid 130 is coated withfluorine in which urethane resin beads are mixed. Only contact surfacesof the lid 130 with respect to the narrowed portion 133, the taperednarrowed portion 134 and the narrowed portions 135A, 135B, 135C and 135Dwith respect to a disk may be coated. In this case also, it ispreferable to use a coating material in which 5% fluorine and 1.0 to1.5% silicon are mixed in urethane resin having beads whose diameter is20 microns. Friction coefficient of the coating material is preferablyin a range of 0.2 to 0.6, and more preferably equal to or less than0.55.

Next, the bezel will be explained using FIGS. 3 and 4.

The bezel 140 is provided with an insertion port 141. The insertion port141 is formed such that its central portion has greatest width, and itswidth is gradually reduced toward its both ends. A felt 142 having aslit is pasted on a surface of the bezel 140 on the side of the chassisouter sheath along the insertion port 141.

As shown in FIG. 4, when a disk is set from the insertion port 141, orwhen the disk is discharged from the insertion port 141, the felt 142 isfolded in the advancing direction of the disk. When a disk is to be set,it is possible to insert although there is slight resistance, but inorder to position the disk, it is preferable that the insertion port 141is narrow and its position is further limited by the felt 142. When thedisk is to be discharged, a bending force of the felt 142 toward theinsertion port 141 is increased, and when the felt 142 is folded andbecomes parallel to the insertion port 141, a friction force between thedisk and the surface of the felt 142 becomes extremely large, and thedisk can not be discharged or other trouble is generated.

Therefore, to prevent the trouble when a disk is discharged, it ispreferable that the resistance caused by the felt 142 is smaller.Thereupon, an area of the insertion port 141 in the inner side surfaceof the bezel 140 is wider than an area of the insertion port 141 in theouter side surface of the bezel 140.

In the embodiment in which both ends of the insertion port 141 in theouter side surface of the bezel 140 is narrower than the central portionthereof, it is preferable that the width of both ends of the insertionport 141 in the inner side surface of the bezel 140 is wider than thewidth of both ends of the insertion port 141 in the outer side surfaceof the bezel 140.

It is preferable that the width of the insertion port 141 in the outerside surface of the bezel 140 is wider than the disk thickness, and isthicker than thickness of the felt to which the disk thickness is added,the thickness of the insertion port 141 in the inner side surface of thebezel 140 is wider than the thickness of the disk thickness to which thefelt thickness is added.

Motions of various members when a disk is inserted will be explainedusing FIGS. 5 to 17.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing aninitial stage of a disk inserting operation of the embodiment. FIG. 6 isa plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing anintermediate stage of the disk inserting operation of the embodiment.FIG. 7 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing acompleted stage of the disk inserting operation of the embodiment. FIG.8 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing a stageafter a predetermined time is elapsed from the state shown in FIG. 7.FIG. 9 is a plan view of the base body of the disk apparatus showing astate in which a traverse is operated in a direction where a spindlemotor side comes closest to the lid. FIG. 10 is a sectional view of amain slider showing a first cam mechanism of the embodiment. FIG. 11 isa side view of a sub-slider showing a second cam mechanism and a thirdcam mechanism of the embodiment. FIG. 12 is a side sectional view of anessential portion of the disk apparatus showing the state shown in FIG.6. FIG. 13 is aside sectional view of an essential portion of the diskapparatus showing the state shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG. 14 is a sidesectional view of an essential portion of the disk apparatus showing astate immediately before chucking. FIG. 15 is a side sectional view ofan essential portion of the disk apparatus showing the state shown inFIG. 9. FIG. 16 is a side sectional view of an essential portion of thedisk apparatus showing a replaying operation of a disk. FIG. 17 is aside sectional view of an essential portion of the disk apparatusshowing a case in which a center of the disk and a center of a hub aredeviated from each other in the state shown in FIG. 14.

FIG. 5 shows a state of a disk 1A shown in FIG. 2.

When the disk 1 is not inserted, the pull-in lever 80 is in a standbystate where the pull-in lever 80 is turned toward the spindle motor 31Athrough a predetermined angle. In this state, the projection 91 of thesub-lever 90 is located at the movable side end of the long groove 83before the groove 83A. A distance between the guide 17 and the seconddisk guide 81 is smaller than a diameter of the disk 1.

In the initial stage when the disk 1 is to be inserted, the disk 1A isfirst abuts against the guide 17 and the second disk guide 81, the disk1A is supported by the guide 17 and the second disk guide 81 and itsposition is restricted.

If the disk 1A is further pushed in, the second disk guide 81 is turnedin a direction away from the spindle motor 31A together with theinserting motion. With this turning motion of the second disk guide 81,the projection 91 of the sub-lever 90 slides in the long groove 83toward the stationary side end. Therefore, the sub-lever 90 also turnsaround the turning fulcrum 92. If the disk 1A is further inserted, thedisk 1A abuts against the guide 101 of the discharge lever 100.

In the state shown in FIG. 5, the loading motor 60 is not operated andthus, the main slider 40 and the sub-slider 50 are not operated either.An upper surface of the disk 1A slides while being in contact with theprojecting guide formed by the narrowed portions 135A, 135B, 135C and135D of the lid 135 shown in FIG. 2, and a lower surface of the disk 1Aslides while being contact with the front guider 21 and the traversefelt 22 shown in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 6 and 12 show a state of the disk 1B shown in FIG. 2.

If the disk 1 is further inserted from the state shown in FIG. 5, oneend of the disk is supported by the guide 17 and in this state, theother end thereof is supported by the third disk guide 84. The pull-inlever 80 is most separated from the spindle motor 31A in this state. Inthis state, the projection 91 of the sub-lever 90 is located at thestationary side end of the long groove 83. A distance between the guide17 and the second disk guide 81 is substantially the same as a diameterof the disk 1. Since the guide 101 is pushed by the disk 1B, thedischarge lever 100 keeps turning together with the inserting motion ofthe disk. An upper surface of the disk 1A slides while being in contactwith the projecting guide formed by the narrowed portions 135A, 135B,135C and 135D of the lid 135 shown in FIG. 2, and slides while beingcontact with the narrowed portions 133 and 134 as shown in FIG. 12.

If the disk 1B is further pushed in from the state shown in FIG. 6, thesecond disk guide 81 moves toward the spindle motor 31A together withthe inserting motion. As the second disk guide 81 turns, the projection91 of the sub-lever 90 slides in the long groove 83 from the stationaryside end toward the movable side end. Therefore, the sub-lever 90 alsoturns around the turning fulcrum 92.

In the above motion process, the disk 1B abuts against the guide 112 ofthe restriction lever 110, and the restriction lever 110 turns.

When the second disk guide 81 turns toward the spindle motor 31A througha predetermined angle, the restriction lever 110 also turns through apredetermined angle by the disk 1B. If the restriction lever 110 turnsthrough the predetermined angle, the limit switch is operated, and theloading motor 60 starts rotating. The guide 182 of the guide lever 180projects toward the disk 1B, and the disk 1B is supported also by theguide 182 and slides.

The main slider 40 starts sliding toward the rear surface by therotation of the loading motor 60. By the motion of the main slider 40,the pin 93 of the sub-lever 90 moves along the cam groove provided inthe corresponding main slider 40. At that time, the pin 93 moves towardthe spindle motor 31A by the corresponding cam groove. By the movementof the pin 93, the sub-lever 90 biases the pull-in lever 80 in adirection in which the movable side end thereof turns and moves towardthe spindle motor 31A. Therefore, the pull-in lever 80 biases the disk1B in the inserting direction. By this biasing force of the pull-inlever 80, the disk is further pushed in without manual operation.

FIGS. 7 and 13 show a state of the disk 1C shown in FIG. 2.

The disk 1C is supported by three points, i.e., the second disk guide81, the guide 182 of the guide lever 180 and the guide 112 of therestriction lever 110, and a center hole of the disk 1C is restricted toa position corresponding to the spindle motor 31A.

The loading motor 60 keeps rotating, and the main slider 40 also keepssliding.

The main slider 40 moves for a predetermined time from the state shownin FIG. 7, but since the cam groove corresponding to the pin 93 of thesub-lever 90 is in parallel to the moving direction, the sub-lever 90 isnot operated. In this state, the projection 91 of the sub-lever 90 islocated in the groove 83A. The pull-in lever 80 is not operated, and thestate where the disk 1C is supported is maintained.

The cam lever 70 is not yet operated for a predetermined time from thestate shown in FIG. 7. That is, cam grooves corresponding to the pins 72and 73 of the cam lever 70 are formed in parallel to the movingdirection of the main slider 40.

FIG. 8 shows a stage after a predetermined time is elapsed from thestate shown in FIG. 7. The state of the traverse 30 shown in FIG. 13 ismaintained from the state shown in FIG. 7 to the state shown in FIG. 8.

If the loading motor 60 is operated to move the main slider 40 from thestate shown in FIG. 8, the cam lever 70 turns around the turning fulcrum71 by the pin 72. By the turning motion of the cam lever 70, thesub-slider 50 slides in a direction away from the main slider 40.

The traverse 30 is operated by the sliding motions of the main slider 40and the sub-slider 50 from the state shown in FIG. 8. That is, from thestate shown in FIG. 13, the spindle motor 31A side of the traverse 30start moving toward the lid 130 as shown in FIG. 14. The pull-in lever80 keeps holding the disk 1C.

FIG. 9 shows a state in which the traverse 30 is operated in a directionwhere the spindle motor 31A comes closest to the lid 130. The traverse30 on the side of the spindle motor 31A rises to the uppermost positionas shown in FIG. 15, and the hub 31B is fitted into the hole of the disk1C and chucking is carried out.

After chucking of the hub 31B to the hole of the disk 1C, the traverse30 on the side of the spindle motor 31A is slightly lowered and disposedfor replaying or recording operation of the disk.

In the state shown in FIG. 14, when the center of the disk 1C and thecenter of the hub 31B match with each other, if the traverse 30 on theside of the spindle motor 31A is moved upward, chucking can be carriedout as shown in FIG. 15. If the center of the disk 1C and the center ofthe hub 31B are deviated from each other due to outer diameter toleranceof the disk 1C or variation in apparatus parts as shown in FIG. 17, itis necessary to laterally slide the disk 1C to an appropriate position.In this embodiment, since the lower surfaces of the narrowed portions133 and 134 are coated with the fluorine in which urethane resin beadsare mixed, the disk 1C can slide laterally to the appropriate positionby a pressing force of the hub 31B to the disk 1C, and the chucking canbe carried out smoothly.

Next, the motion mechanism of the traverse 30 will be explained indetail using FIGS. 10 to 16.

As shown in FIG. 10, the main slider 40 is provided with a long grooveconstituting the first cam mechanism 41. The cam pin 36 fixed to thetraverse 30 is slidably provided in the long groove. The first cammechanism 41 comprises the long groove and the cam pin 36.

As shown in FIG. 11, the sub-slider 50 is provided with a long grooveconstituting the second cam mechanism 51. The cam pin 37 fixed to thetraverse 30 is slidably provided in the long groove. The second cammechanism 51 comprises the long groove and the cam pin 37. Thesub-slider 50 is provided at its both ends with two long grooves whichconstitute third cam mechanism 52 and which have the same shapes. A campin 53 fixed to the base member 16 is slidably provided in each of thelong grooves. The third cam mechanism 52 comprises the long grooves andthe cam pins 53.

A cam pin 36A in FIG. 10 and cam pins 37A and 53A in FIG. 11 show astate of the FIGS. 8 and 13 before the traverse 30 is operated.

A cam pin 36B in FIG. 10 and cam pins 37B and 53B in FIG. 11 show astate shown in FIGS. 9 and 15 in which the traverse 30 is moved in adirection where the spindle motor 31A side comes closest to the lid 130.

Arrows in FIGS. 10 and 11 show moving directions of the main slider 40and the sub-slider 50, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 10, the cam pin 36 moves from the position of the campin 36A to the position of the cam pin 36B, thereby operating thetraverse 30. Therefore, in the position of the cam pin 36 of thetraverse 30, the traverse 30 moves from the position of the cam pin 36Ato the position of the cam pin 36B with respect to the base body 10 by amoving distance in the Y axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 11, the cam pin 37 moves from the position of the campin 37A to the position of the cam pin 37B, thereby operating thetraverse 30 with respect to the sub-slider 50. Therefore, in theposition of the cam pin 36 of the traverse 30, the traverse 30 movesfrom the position of the cam pin 36A to the position of the cam pin 36Bwith respect to the sub-slider 50 by the moving distance in the Y axisdirection. If the cam pin 53 moves from the position of the cam pin 53Ato the position of the cam pin 53B, the cam pin 53 moves the sub-slider50 with respect to the base body 10. Therefore, in the position of thecam pin 36 of the traverse 30, the sub-slider 50 moves from the positionof the cam pin 53A to the position of the cam pin 53B with respect tothe base body 10 by the moving distance in the Y axis direction. On theside of the sub-slider 50, the traverse 30 moves in the Y axis directionwith respect to the base body 10 by a total moving distance of themoving distance in the Y axis direction from the position of the cam pin36A to the position of the cam pin 36B and the moving distance in the Yaxis direction from the position of the cam pin 53A to the position ofthe cam pin 53B.

In the embodiment, the moving distance in the Y axis direction from thefrom the position of the cam pin 36A to the position of the cam pin 36Bshown in FIG. 10 is the same as a total moving distance of the movingdistance in the Y axis direction from the position of the cam pin 37A tothe position of the cam pin 37B shown in FIG. 11 and the moving distancein the Y axis direction from the position of the cam pin 53A to theposition of the cam pin 53B.

In the state where the apparatus is operated in the above manner and thespindle motor 31A side of the traverse 30 comes closest to the lid 130,the disk 1 abuts against the lid 130 and is pressed by the spindle motor31A and the lid 130 as shown in FIG. 15. By this pressing force, the hub31B of the spindle motor 31A is fitted to the center hole of the disk 1,and the chucking operation is completed.

If the chucking operation is completed, the spindle motor 31A side ofthe traverse 30 separates from the lid 130, and is brought into a stateshown in FIG. 16.

This motion is carried out by further rotating the loading motor 60 tomove the main slider 40.

The motion from the completion of the chucking operation to theoperation state in which the spindle motor 31A can replay and record(driving state) is carried out by moving the cam pin 36 from theposition of the cam pin 36B to the position of the cam pin 36C in themain slider 40, and by moving the cam pin 37 from the position of thecam pin 37B to the position of the cam pin 37C, and by moving the campin 53 from the position of the cam pin 53B to the position of the campin 53C in the sub-slider 50.

When the spindle motor 31A is in an operative state (driving state)where the spindle motor 31A can replay and record, the support of thedisk 1 by the second disk guide 81 of the pull-in lever 80, the guide112 of the restriction lever 110 and the guide 182 of the guide lever180 is released, and the disk 1 is held only by the hub 31B of thespindle motor 31A. The second disk guide 81 of the pull-in lever 80, theguide 112 of the restriction lever 110 and the guide 182 of the guidelever 180 are operated by the moving motion of the main slider 40.

As shown in FIG. 11, the second cam mechanism 51 of the sub-slider 50 isprovided with an elastic body 55 comprising a leaf spring for example,and the third cam mechanism 52 is provided with an elastic body 56comprising a leaf spring for example. The elastic body 55 and theelastic body 56 are provided such that a biasing direction of theelastic body 55 against the cam pin 37 and a biasing direction of theelastic body 56 against the cam pin 53 are different. It is preferablethat the biasing directions of the elastic body 55 and the elastic body56 are opposite from each other.

When the set disk 1 is discharged, the loading motor 60 is rotated tomove the main slider. Basically, the above procedure is carried outreversely.

The operation required until the set disk is discharged will beexplained briefly.

First, based on an ejection command, the loading motor 60 is rotated,and the main slider 40 moves toward the disk inserting opening 11.

Therefore, in the main slider 40, the cam pin 36 moves from the positionof the cam pin 36C to the position of the cam pin 36A through theposition of the cam pin 36B. In the sub-slider 50, the cam pin 37 movesfrom the position of the cam pin 37C to the position of the cam pin 37Athrough the position of the cam pin 37B, and the cam pin 53 moves fromthe cam pin 53C to the cam pin 53A through the position of the cam pin53B.

If the cam mechanisms are moved, the disk 1 once moves toward the lid130 and then moves toward the base body 10.

When the disk 1 moves toward the base body 10, the disk 1 abuts againsteh second disk guide 81, the guides 112 and 182 on the side of the outerperiphery of the disk 1, and abuts against the pin 18 on the side of theinner periphery of the disk 1. Therefore, as the traverse 30 movestoward the base body 10, a force acting toward the lid 130 is applied tothe disk 1 from the second disk guide 81, the guides 112 and 182 and thepin 18, and the disk 1 is released from the hub 31B of the spindle motor31A. If the pin 18 is provided at the position of the outer periphery ofthe spindle motor 31A and further from the insulator 34 than the spindlemotor 31A as in this embodiment, the disk 1 can be released from the hub31B of the spindle motor 31A even when the second disk guide 81 and theguides 112 and 182 do not function.

Thereafter, the locked state of the discharge lever 100 is released bythe motion of the main slider 40, and the movable side end of thedischarge lever 100 turns toward the disk inserting opening 11 by theelastic force of the elastic body 104. Therefore, the disk 1 releasedfrom the hub 31B of the spindle motor 31A is pushed out toward the diskinserting opening 11 by the discharge lever 100. In the state where thedischarge lever 100 moves, the pull-in lever 80 is held in a state whereits movable side end moves in a direction where the movable side end ismost separated from the spindle motor 31A. The position of the pull-inlever 80 may be a position where the second disk guide 81 is not incontact with the disk 1. When a disk is to be discharged, if the pull-inlever 80 is disposed at a position where the disk 1 is not in abutmentagainst the second disk guide 81, trouble caused when a disk isdischarged can be prevented.

According to the present invention, the disk apparatus can be reduced inthickness and size.

It is possible to prevent a disk from being damaged due tocharacteristics of the urethane resin beads, to smoothly slide the diskwith sliding ability obtained by the characteristics of fluorine, and toeffectively prevent a disk from inclining.

According to the invention, when a disk is to be set on the hub of thespindle motor, even when the centers of the disk and the hub aredeviated from each other, it is possible to carry out reliably chuckingoperation by slipping the disk.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The disk apparatus of the embodiment is especially effective as a diskapparatus which is incorporated or integrally provided in a so-callednotebook personal computer in which display means, input means,processing means and the like are integrally provided.

1. A disk apparatus comprising a chassis outer sheath having a base bodyand a lid, in which a front surface of said chassis outer sheath isformed with a disk inserting opening into which a disk is directlyinserted, said lid is formed at its central portion with an openingwhich is greater than a center hole of said disk, a traverse provided onsaid base body holds a spindle motor, a pickup and drive means whichmoves said pickup, a projecting guide is provided on an inner surface ofsaid lid which is located on an outer side of an outer peripheral end ofsaid disk in a state where said disk is set on said spindle motor andwhich is located on the side of said disk inserting opening, and saiddisk inserted from said disk inserting opening is guided by saidprojecting guide, wherein a contact surface of said projecting guidewith respect to said disk is coated with fluorine in which urethaneresin beads are mixed.
 2. The disk apparatus according to claim 1,wherein said projecting guide is formed by a narrowed portion.
 3. Thedisk apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said projecting guide isformed by a plurality of narrowed portions.
 4. A disk apparatuscomprising a chassis outer sheath having a base body and a lid, in whicha front surface of said chassis outer sheath is formed with a diskinserting opening into which a disk is directly inserted, said lid isformed at its central portion with an opening which is greater than acenter hole of said disk, said opening is formed at its outer peripherywith a narrowed portion projecting toward said base body, a traverseprovided on said base body holds a spindle motor, a pickup and drivemeans which moves said pickup, said traverse is moved, thereby bringingsaid spindle motor toward said lid, and said disk abuts against saidnarrowed portion, thereby setting said disk on a hub of said spindlemotor, wherein a contact surface of said narrowed portion with respectto said disk is coated with fluorine in which urethane resin beads aremixed.
 5. The disk apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a secondnarrowed portion which is tapered from said narrowed portion toward saiddisk inserting opening is formed, and a contact surface of said secondnarrowed portion with respect to said disk is coated with fluorine inwhich urethane resin beads are mixed.
 6. The disk apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein urethane resin paint in which fluorine and silicon aremixed is used as the coating material.
 7. The disk apparatus accordingto claim 1, wherein a friction coefficient of said coating material isin a range of 0.2 to 0.6.
 8. The disk apparatus according to claim 1,wherein an inner surface of said lid is coated with said coatingmaterial.
 9. The disk apparatus according to claim 1, wherein saidspindle motor is located at a central portion of said base body, areciprocating range of said pickup is located closer to said diskinserting opening than said spindle motor, said traverse is disposedsuch that the reciprocating direction of said pickup is different froman inserting direction of said disk, a projecting guide is provided onsaid traverse surface which is located on an outer side of an outerperipheral end of said disk in a state where said disk is set on saidspindle motor and which is located on the side of said disk insertingopening, and said disk inserted from said disk inserting opening isguided by said projecting guide.
 10. The disk apparatus according toclaim 9, wherein a surface of said projecting guide provided on saidtraverse surface is coated with fluorine in which urethane resin beadsare mixed.
 11. The disk apparatus according to claim 4, wherein urethaneresin paint in which fluorine and silicon are mixed is used as thecoating material.
 12. The disk apparatus according to claim 4, wherein afriction coefficient of said coating material is in a range of 0.2 to0.6.
 13. The disk apparatus according to claim 4, wherein an innersurface of said lid is coated with said coating material.
 14. The diskapparatus according to claim 4, wherein said spindle motor is located ata central portion of said base body, a reciprocating range of saidpickup is located closer to said disk inserting opening than saidspindle motor, said traverse is disposed such that the reciprocatingdirection of said pickup is different from an inserting direction ofsaid disk, a projecting guide is provided on said traverse surface whichis located on an outer side of an outer peripheral end of said disk in astate where said disk is set on said spindle motor and which is locatedon the side of said disk inserting opening, and said disk inserted fromsaid disk inserting opening is guided by said projecting guide.
 15. Thedisk apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a surface of saidprojecting guide provided on said traverse surface is coated withfluorine in which urethane resin beads are mixed.
 16. The disk apparatusaccording to claim 14, wherein a surface of said projecting guideprovided on said traverse surface is coated with fluorine in whichurethane resin beads are mixed.